35 illustrations that tell the biggest stories of 2020

Samantha LeeDec 22, 2020, 05:39 IST

Samantha Lee/Insider

Throughout this unprecedented year, Insider's graphics team was challenged to bring our biggest stories to life through illustration.
From discussions and revelations on diversity in the workplace to the historic 2020 US presidential election, we've visualized hundreds of stories this year — all during the coronavirus pandemic.

Some of our highlights include how the GOP learned to love QAnon, our analysis into how people should be paid $1,000 to get a COVID-19 vaccine, and how we can truly dismantle systemic racism in the workplace.

Frogs are in an internet golden age - how the animals once grouped with an online 'hate symbol' turned wholesome

Anthony Kwan/Getty Images; The Muppets Studio/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Insider

Inside the wild world of 'The Points Guy,' Brian Kelly: A massively profitable media empire and claims of non-stop partying, drugs and extravagant spending

Dave Kotinsky/Stringer/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

WeWork paid over $2 million in cash to a woman who threatened to expose claims of sex, illegal drugs, and discrimination in a horrifying 50-page document

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

A decade ago, Big Oil bet on algae as the fuel of the future. Now Exxon is the only major firm still backing the biofuel, which several top algae scientists say is destined to flop.

Jon Nazca/Reuters; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

A decade ago, Big Oil bet on algae as the fuel of the future. Now Exxon is the only major firm still backing the biofuel, which several top algae scientists say is destined to flop.

Cooking classes, dozens of singers, and a 29-hour extravaganza: Here's how Wall Street and Big Law plan to throw their lavish winter holiday parties online

Shayanne Gal/Business Insider

Stop throwing big weddings in the middle of a pandemic. It's not just about you.

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Samantha Lee/Insider

Congress' response to the 2008 financial crisis sparked a decade of inequality and resentment. The US is now repeating that mistake.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images; Zach Gibson/Getty Images; Congress.gov; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Bon Appétit's editor in chief just resigned - but staffers of color say there's a 'toxic' culture of microaggressions and exclusion that runs far deeper than one man

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Bon Appétit's editor in chief just resigned - but staffers of color say there's a 'toxic' culture of microaggressions and exclusion that runs far deeper than one man

Sperm donors are almost always white, and it's pushing Black parents using IVF to start families that don't look like them

Samantha Lee/Insider

Biden's 'dark' side: How Democrats are embracing secret money and the Citizens United decision to defeat Trump

Drew Angerer/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Meet the GOP's biggest Hollywood donors

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images; William B. Plowman/NBC; Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

How the GOP learned to love QAnon

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Election Day is here. These are 11 things to know about the billions of dollars spent to buy your vote.

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

5 states just voted on marijuana legalization. Here's everything you need to know.

Skye Gould/Business Insider

Behind the scenes of record turnout, Native American voters faced persistent hurdles to casting a ballot

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Top economists and 2 former 2020 presidential candidates are backing a 'vaccine stimulus' that would pay people at least $1,000 to get COVID-19 shots

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

There are 1,510 people in Jeffrey Epstein's little black book. Now you can search them all for the first time.

Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images; Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images; Thierry Chesnot/Getty Images; Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images; Robin Marchant/WireImage; Bennett Raglin/WireImage; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images; Alexander Koerner/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

How much did Trump's hydroxychloroquine obsession cost taxpayers? We found out.

George Frey/AFP via Getty Images; Keith Bedford/The Boston Globe via Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Inmates in New York prisons say officers are punishing them for seeking medical care and coronavirus protection

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Amazon-owned Whole Foods is quietly tracking its employees with a heat map tool that ranks which stores are most at risk of unionizing

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Leaked audio reveals StockX is facing a crisis in its authentication centers, with workers testing positive for COVID-19 and complaints of unsafe working conditions as product piles up

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Leaked audio reveals StockX is facing a crisis in its authentication centers, with workers testing positive for COVID-19 and complaints of unsafe working conditions as product piles up

Worker unrest and internal tensions are forcing a dramatic reckoning at McDonald's that could forever change the fast-food icon

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Disney World employees describe the cost of staying safe as coronavirus cases surge in Florida

Gregg DeGuire/WireImage; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

We traced the history and significance of 'Got 'Em.' Here's how the idiom became one of the most divisive phrases in sneaker culture.

Nike; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Silicon Valley's startups are facing the biggest crisis in a generation. Here's what venture capital investors say businesses should do to stay healthy and survive.

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Bill Gates: We will have a coronavirus vaccine, but the disease will keep coming back if there's a US 'leadership vacuum'

Mike Cohen/Getty Images for The New York Times; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Moderna's groundbreaking coronavirus vaccine was designed in just 2 days

Moderna; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

The Fauci interview: How to 'keep your immune system working optimally,' gather safely, and get by until summer 2022

Alex Wong/Getty Images; Drew Angerer/Getty Images; Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Evan Vucci/AP Photo; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Diversity' and 'inclusion' are the emptiest words in corporate America. Here's what we really need to dismantle systemic racism in the office.

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

SpaceX's most vocal holdouts in South Texas are selling their homes to Elon Musk's rocket company to make way for a Mars spaceport

David McNew/AFP via Getty Images; Dave Mosher/Business Insider; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

We talked to 42 insiders about Tesla's factory of the future. They revealed the corners cut to hit ambitious production targets.

Sjoerd van der Wal/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

TikTok employees have started referring to Trump's deadline to ban the app as 'D-Day' over fears of catastrophic job losses

Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

TikTok is racing to finalize a deal that could give Oracle and US investors a majority stake in the app. Here's what we know about the bid that could save TikTok from a US ban.

TikTok; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

TikTok is racing to finalize a deal that could give Oracle and US investors a majority stake in the app. Here's what we know about the bid that could save TikTok from a US ban.

What it's like to get locked out of Google indefinitely

Google; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Is Silicon Valley finally dead?

Samantha Lee/Business Insider

White House staffers are making and sharing their plans for when the Trump administration leaves office next month

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

35 illustrations that tell the biggest stories of 2020

Frogs are in an internet golden age - how the animals once grouped with an online 'hate symbol' turned wholesome

Inside the wild world of 'The Points Guy,' Brian Kelly: A massively profitable media empire and claims of non-stop partying, drugs and extravagant spending

WeWork paid over $2 million in cash to a woman who threatened to expose claims of sex, illegal drugs, and discrimination in a horrifying 50-page document

A decade ago, Big Oil bet on algae as the fuel of the future. Now Exxon is the only major firm still backing the biofuel, which several top algae scientists say is destined to flop.

Cooking classes, dozens of singers, and a 29-hour extravaganza: Here's how Wall Street and Big Law plan to throw their lavish winter holiday parties online

Stop throwing big weddings in the middle of a pandemic. It's not just about you.

Congress' response to the 2008 financial crisis sparked a decade of inequality and resentment. The US is now repeating that mistake.

Bon Appétit's editor in chief just resigned - but staffers of color say there's a 'toxic' culture of microaggressions and exclusion that runs far deeper than one man

Sperm donors are almost always white, and it's pushing Black parents using IVF to start families that don't look like them

Biden's 'dark' side: How Democrats are embracing secret money and the Citizens United decision to defeat Trump

Meet the GOP's biggest Hollywood donors

How the GOP learned to love QAnon

Election Day is here. These are 11 things to know about the billions of dollars spent to buy your vote.

5 states just voted on marijuana legalization. Here's everything you need to know.

Behind the scenes of record turnout, Native American voters faced persistent hurdles to casting a ballot

Top economists and 2 former 2020 presidential candidates are backing a 'vaccine stimulus' that would pay people at least $1,000 to get COVID-19 shots

There are 1,510 people in Jeffrey Epstein's little black book. Now you can search them all for the first time.

How much did Trump's hydroxychloroquine obsession cost taxpayers? We found out.

Inmates in New York prisons say officers are punishing them for seeking medical care and coronavirus protection

Amazon-owned Whole Foods is quietly tracking its employees with a heat map tool that ranks which stores are most at risk of unionizing

Leaked audio reveals StockX is facing a crisis in its authentication centers, with workers testing positive for COVID-19 and complaints of unsafe working conditions as product piles up

Worker unrest and internal tensions are forcing a dramatic reckoning at McDonald's that could forever change the fast-food icon

Disney World employees describe the cost of staying safe as coronavirus cases surge in Florida

We traced the history and significance of 'Got 'Em.' Here's how the idiom became one of the most divisive phrases in sneaker culture.

Silicon Valley's startups are facing the biggest crisis in a generation. Here's what venture capital investors say businesses should do to stay healthy and survive.

Bill Gates: We will have a coronavirus vaccine, but the disease will keep coming back if there's a US 'leadership vacuum'

Moderna's groundbreaking coronavirus vaccine was designed in just 2 days

The Fauci interview: How to 'keep your immune system working optimally,' gather safely, and get by until summer 2022

Diversity' and 'inclusion' are the emptiest words in corporate America. Here's what we really need to dismantle systemic racism in the office.

SpaceX's most vocal holdouts in South Texas are selling their homes to Elon Musk's rocket company to make way for a Mars spaceport

We talked to 42 insiders about Tesla's factory of the future. They revealed the corners cut to hit ambitious production targets.

TikTok employees have started referring to Trump's deadline to ban the app as 'D-Day' over fears of catastrophic job losses

TikTok is racing to finalize a deal that could give Oracle and US investors a majority stake in the app. Here's what we know about the bid that could save TikTok from a US ban.

What it's like to get locked out of Google indefinitely

Is Silicon Valley finally dead?